Vet Clin Food Anim 24 (2008) 117

Newborn Dairy Calf Management

John F. Mee, MVB, PhD, MRCVS
Teagasc, Moorepark Dairy Production Research Centre, Fermoy, County Cork, Ireland

The perinatal period is the most hazardous in the life of all animals.
More than 60% of producers have reported that most of their calf mortality
occurs at birth [1]. The main causes of perinatal morbidity and mortality
are, in descending order of importance, combined respiratory and metabolic
acidosis, parturient trauma, hypoglobulinemia, congenital infections and
deciencies, and omphalophlebitis. Perinatal mortality (PM) may be dened
as calf death before, during, or within 48 hours of calving, following a gestation period of at least 260 days, irrespective of the cause of death or the
circumstances of the calving [2]. Some 90% of calves that die in the perinatal period were alive at the start of calving, and so much of this loss is preventable. The prevalence of PM in dairy herds in the United States has
increased in recent years [3] and is currently 8% [4]. This average gure
obscures the fact that PM follows a right-skewed distribution in which
most herds have none or minimal losses but some herds have high (25%)
mortality [4]. Perinatal morbidity and mortality are growing welfare
concerns, given their impact not just on losses around calving but also on
subsequent productivity, health, reproduction, and farm economics. It is
estimated that the economic loss due to stillbirths in American dairies
increased by $76 million between 1985 and 1996 because of the increased
incidence of stillbirths [5].
Management of the newborn dairy calf is best achieved through implementation of simple protocols that document the correct strategies to be followed at the herd level and the correct procedures to be performed at the
individual animal level. These protocols cover management of the prepartum cow, management of calving (monitoring of eutocia and detection
and management of dystocia), and newborn calf care. Discussion with producers about newborn calf problems or care represents a contact moment
that veterinarians should use to expand their role in veterinarian-led dairy
herd reproductive management [6].

E-mail address: john.mee@teagasc.ie

0749-0720/08/$ - see front matter 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.cvfa.2007.10.002
vetfood.theclinics.com

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Management of the prepartum dairy cow

Movement to the maternity unit
To avoid calves being born outside the maternity pen and to prevent
associated calving problems and PM [7], producers need to be able to predict the likely date and time of calving. Calving date, and hence when to
move cows from the far-o to the close-up pen, can be predicted from service data to within approximately 1 week. When deciding when to move
cows from the close-up to the maternity pen, more predictive signs are
required. An alternative approach to predicting time of calving is to alter
the timing of calving through nutritional or pharmacologic means. Late
evening feeding before calving has been shown in some [8], but not all, studies [9] to result in more daytime calving in dairy herds but it may have an
attendant risk of increased dystocia and stillbirth [8].
Currently, on American dairy farms, pregnant cows are moved from the
far-o dry cow group to the close-up dry cow group approximately 3 weeks
before predicted calving date, and from there to a maternity pen some 2 days
before expected calving [1012]. Within 36 hours of calving, cows in free stall
barns will attempt to seek isolation by lying in cubicles furthest from other
cows; thus, early movement to the maternity unit fulls their natural isolation-seeking behavior [13]. It is recommended that pregnant cows be in the
maternity unit at least 24 hours before calving [2,11], and heifers earlier, because this is when calving commences; blood progesterone concentrations decline sharply, coordinated myometrial contractions rst appear, and cervical
opening commences. Cows moved to the maternity unit 3 days before calving
had signicantly lower blood glucocorticoid concentrations at calving, indicating less stress than those moved during calving [14]. Within 12 to 24 hours,
signs of imminent calving include increased frequency of rising and lying
bouts, shifting weight, urinating and defecating, and swishing or raising the
tail; colostrum leakage; increased vulval relaxation and swelling; teat distension; and, most reliably, prominent udder distension and pelvic ligament relaxation [2]. An increment in sacrosciatic ligament relaxation of greater than
or equal to 5mm from the preceding day was 94% accurate in predicting calving within 24 hours [15]. More obvious signs of restlessness, such as tail
swishing and shifting weight on the hind legs, indicate calving is likely within
a few hours. However, some 10% to 20% of animals, particularly heifers, enter stage two of calving with no visible signs of stage one.
The early move is designed to allow the cow, and more particularly the
heifer, sucient time to adapt to the stress associated with social isolation,
change to a new environment, and, possibly, a new diet before the time of
calving. Heifers are particularly susceptible to environmental stressinduced
vulva constriction and dystocia [16]. The impact of these additional stressors
at calving, when periparturient immune suppression is already present, has
been shown to increase susceptibility to infectious diseases like mastitis.

NEWBORN DAIRY CALF MANAGEMENT

However, it can be dicult to predict calving and to time this precalving

movement accurately, which can be a problem in large herds with limited
maternity pens. This situation often results in cows being moved too early
and spending a week or more in the maternity pen. Movement too early
to the maternity unit will aect the cleanliness of the calving environment.
Field observations suggest that if cows spend 3 or more days in the maternity pen, they are at greater risk for elevated blood nonesteried fatty acid
concentrations, ketosis, and displaced abomasum [11]. The movement of
animals, particularly nervous cows and heifers, will suspend their calving behavior, possibly for hours, so they should be left without further disturbance
to adapt to the maternity unit and resume calving progress. Environmental
stress can be further reduced in heifers by calving them separately from
older cows, maintaining visual contact with herdmates to prevent social isolation, not tethering them at calving, and avoiding disturbances from routine farm tasks, such as feeding calves and cleaning out pens.
Alternative movement strategies currently nding favor in medium- to
large-size American dairies include no movement precalving or only moving
cows once stage one or stage two of calving is detected. Dry cows can be
maintained in a large group bedded pack right up to calving and freshen
there. Cows expected to calve within 2 to 3 weeks would be moved into a prefresh pen where they would remain until calved. The advantage of this system is a reduction in the number of pen moves, with the associated
behavioral and metabolic sequelae, and a reduction in disturbance at calving. However, the risk of cross suckling is increased and pack hygiene needs
to be managed well, with an all-in, all-out policy [11]. Moving cows once
stage one has been detected, by behavioral cues or by relaxation of the sacrosciatic ligaments, has been recommended to reduce the time cows spend in
the maternity pen [17]. However, it is dicult to monitor close-up dry cows
closely enough to detect the presence of stage one, which may result in cows
being moved too early. An alternative strategy is to move cows once stage
two has been detected. The advantages of this approach are that cows spend
hours, not days, in the maternity pen, thus reducing the magnitude of the
change in dry matter intake and freeing up maternity pens for other cows,
particularly in large herds. A recent eld observational study that compared
moving heifers and cows in stage one (mucus or blood present) or stage two
(fetal membranes or the fetal legs or head present) to a maternity pen found
that moving animals in stage two was associated with reduced time to rst
lie down, reduced duration of calving from entry, and reduced assistance,
dystocia, and stillbirth rates [18,19]. It was preliminarily concluded that
calving duration is a potential risk factor for dystocia and stillbirth [20].
These results suggest that it is less detrimental to move animals that have
already commenced calving (stage two) than it is to move animals that
are about to start calving (stage one). It is likely that environmental disturbance, such as moving an animal, may cause psychogenic uterine atony [21]

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if initiated in stage one of calving, but may only cause a temporary decrease
in uterine motility if initiated in stage two. However, this strategy requires
24-hour monitoring of the close-up group, with approximately hourly
checks, and it is not clear whether this policy may interrupt the calving process and lead to more calving problems than if these animals were not
moved or were moved before stage one commenced.
Currently, moving cows before calving commences, as is widely practiced, appears prudent to optimize newborn calf care. However, the potential management benets of alternative strategies, particularly in large
dairies, need to be examined in controlled research studies.
Design of maternity facilities
Close-up pens for the 2 to 3 weeks precalving, separate from lactating
cow housing, are used on most (53%) American dairy operations, particularly on large (R500 cow) operations (92%) [22]. Although pasture is the
natural calving environment for cows and results in less dystocia and stillbirth than connement calving environments [16], potential problems
include calf abandonment, mismothering, and cross fostering. The predominant inside maternity facilities on American dairies are individual calving
pens (32% of operations) and multiple animal calving areas (29%); pasture
is the primary outside maternity area on 42% of American dairy operations
[22]. In studies where most calves were born in the free stall barn, suckling
frequency was substantially reduced and calf mortality in the rst week of
life was signicantly increased [7,23].
Ideally, individual calving pens should be 12 ft2 with a sand or rubber
base and deep straw bed, with one pen per 25 cows if calving all year round.
Recent Canadian research indicates that cows prefer to lie down and to
calve on a straw pack rather than on a rubber mattress, possibly reecting
their innate maternal nesting behavior, and that calves may be quicker to
stand on straw [24]. Individual calving pens were designed originally to limit
the transmission of disease (brucellosis) around abortion or calving and this
benet has also been reported to reduce mastitis and somatic cell count
[25,26], metritis [25], and calf mortality [25,27], the last possibly because
of optimized conditions for natural suckling. In addition, increased individual cow attention in a clean environment with reduced stress [17] may be associated with the reduced culling rates in high-producing cows in American
dairies calved in individual pens compared with on bedding packs [28].
However, individual pens are more expensive to build and require more labor to manage, and moving and isolating cows into them precalving are
stressors that disrupt the calving progress and may result in increased calving assistance and diculty and reduced dry matter intake.
Group maternity pens should ideally house fewer than 10 cows to prevent
overcrowding, lack of bunk space, and reduced dry matter intake, and
reduced subsequent reproductive eciency [29,30]. The immediate benets

NEWBORN DAIRY CALF MANAGEMENT

of group calving pens include a reduction in the number of pen moves;

maintenance of a stable social group and dry matter intake [11]; expression
of more natural calving behavior, such as isolation seeking (particularly
where heifers are separated from cows); and reduction in calving paralysis
on deep bedded packs [29]. Additional benets include improved labor eciency (increased number of cows per full-time equivalent) due to easier
monitoring, reduced handling of cows [27], and greater reproductive eciency [30]. Notwithstanding these advantages, group maternity pens have
been associated with prolonged pregnant cow residency (O10 days) [10],
leading to increased environmental fecal contamination and exposure to
greater pathogen challenge [27]. This situation, combined with calf desertion
and cross suckling [31], led to reduced calf plasma immunoglobulin concentrations [11,32] and increased risk of calf respiratory [33] and enteric disease
[34] and mastitis in heifers [35] in some, although not in all, studies [36]. In
addition, overcrowding in group calving pens with heifers and cows can lead
to social stress on heifers, which may cause prolonged calving.
When labor is not a limiting factor, individual maternity pens can provide optimum conditions for the cow and the newborn calf; on farms where
labor is limited, group calving pens, if well managed, can also provide suitable calving conditions.

Management of the cow at calving

Calving supervision
Good supervision depends on monitoring calving, particularly stage two,
and intervening if and where necessary, while avoiding excessive direct supervision. The continuous presence of an observer during stage two of calving has been associated with an increase in calving problems and assisted
deliveries [16]. Monitoring approximately every 3 to 6 hours from the rst
detection of the onset of stage one is advisable to detect the onset of stage
two of normal calving and to detect abnormal calvings early [16].
The duration of stage one of calving is highly variable among animals,
and the onset and changes occurring, such as myometrial contractions, cervical dilation, and fetal repositioning, are largely not detectable. Hence, 6 to
12 hours of restlessness, box walking, and tail raising, and increased frequency of rising and lying down may occur. If, after approximately 6 to
12 hours (cows and heifers, respectively) of this behavior without undue disturbance, abdominal contractions have not commenced, an exploratory
examination should be conducted. If cervical dilation has commenced and
no abnormalities are detectable, monitoring should continue approximately
hourly. The allantochorion ruptures approximately 1 hour before the amnion appears [37]. Undue delay between the rupture of the allantochorion
and the appearance of the amnion or fetal hooves may indicate a problem
such as fetal oversize or maldisposition.

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Calving assistance
Most cows will happily calve unattended and unassisted and, where possible, should be allowed to do so. However, a small proportion of cows and
a greater proportion of heifers may require assistance. Phenotypic dystocia
rates are increasing internationally [38]; currently, 40% of heifers and 20%
of cows are assisted on American dairies [39]. Three simple questions need
to be addressed by herd personnel to ensure successful calving intervention:
whether or when to intervene, how to intervene, and when to solicit veterinary assistance. For the veterinarian, these queries often come down to
whether to pursue traction or surgery. Potential dystocia may be dierentiated from eutocia by the presence of risk factors for the various types of dystocia. These risk factors may be assessed from the breed and sire of the calf;
the body condition and size of the dam; previous calving history;
exploratory examination; calving conditions; and most importantly, calving
progress. Addressing the question of whether to intervene during calving,
intervention is recommended in cases of fetopelvic incompatibility, maldisposition, twinning, uterine inertia, and vulval or cervical stenosis. Addressing the question of when to intervene, early intervention is recommended
during stage one for uterine inertia and during stage two for maldisposition
and twinning. Delayed intervention is recommended during stage two for
fetopelvic incompatibility and cases of vulval or cervical stenosis. Fetopelvic
incompatibility with a live full-term normal calf in anterior presentation is
the primary reason for intervention during calving, particularly by herd personnel. The importance of progress, rather than clock watching, during
stage two is emphasized, because the onset of stage two is usually unknown.
When the dam is rst detected in stage two, an exploratory examination
should be conducted that includes cow health (milk fever, mastitis); the
integrity and contents of the amniotic sac; the disposition, vigor, and size
of the calf; the degree of dilation of the vagina and vulva; and an assessment
of how long the cow has been in stage two of calving. The amniotic sac may
be ruptured or intact and normally contains milky white uid, whereas mustard or brown uid indicates meconium staining, red uid indicates placental hemorrhage or late fetal death, fetid uid indicates early fetal death, and
cotyledons indicate premature placental separation. A vital calf will have
strong interdigital, bulbar, lingual, swallowing, and anal reexes. With
increasing degree of acidosis, failure to show the interdigital reex will precede failure to show the bulbar and swallowing reexes. If the amnion or
fetal legs are dry and cold, the cow has been calving at least 30 to 60 minutes. If indentations from the calfs incisors are visible on the lower surface
of a swollen upturned purple tongue, the calf has been stuck at the vulva for
at least 3 hours. Signs of progress during stage two include a recumbent dam
straining intermittently but strongly with occasional breaks while she stands
up and lies down again, and progressive emergence of the fetal legs and head
through the vulva. It is normal for the greatest delay in delivery of the fetus

NEWBORN DAIRY CALF MANAGEMENT

to occur once the muzzle and forehead have emerged, but the eyes are not
yet visible. Once progress is normal, discrete monitoring without disturbance every 30 minutes, or continuously if patience can be assured, is recommended. Intervention should not be performed before the calfs muzzle has
emerged and not before the calfs fetlocks are visible. As a general rule, if
ropes have to be placed on the calfs legs in the vagina, intervention is too
early. When progress ceases over 30 minutes or the calf begins to exhibit
signs of reduced vigor (such as capital or lingual edema, buccal or lingual
cyanosis, scleral hemorrhages, or reduced responsiveness to stimulation),
intervention should be conducted. In approximately 5% of calves it will
not be possible to elicit any reex even though they are alive, possibly because they are wedged tightly in the birth canal. When severe acidosis can
be traced back to stage two of relatively short duration, rapid improvement
can be achieved by resuscitative care. When acidosis exists over a longer period, as in delayed assistance, the ecacy of supportive care is lower because
hypoxic lesions such as meningeal, subepicardial, and subpleural hemorrhages may develop [37]. It has been suggested that the stress of a prolonged
delivery, rather than the type of assistance, may ultimately be responsible
for reduced calf vigor following dystocia.

Perinatal mortality
Currently, the reported stillbirth rate (calves born dead) in American
dairies is 8% (singletons 7.2, twins 28.2%) [4]. PM rates are increasing internationally, particularly in Holstein-Friesian primiparae [3,4,40]. Signicant
animal-level risk factors include parity [4], twinning [4], calf gender [4],
shorter or longer gestation length, and sire predicted transmitting ability
for PM [40,41]. Signicant herd-level risk factors include herd size [4] and
season [4]. Traditionally, most PM has been attributed to dystocia [42]
but recent research indicates that the proportion of PM attributable to dystocia may be decreasing [43,44]. The main causes of PM are anoxia and
trauma following dystocia, and, to a much lesser extent, death in utero
and premature placental expulsion [37]. One investigator reported that up
to 40% of veterinary-assisted deliveries may result in rib fractures and up
to 10% in vertebral fractures [45], and 13% of calves delivered using a calving aid suered traumatic injuries at calving [46]. PM following eutocia
(often called weak calf syndrome) may be associated with intrauterine
growth retardation or prematurity, congenital defects, infections, precalving
nutrition, dysmaturity, twins, placental dysfunction or sire-specic genetic
weakness leading to poor perinatal viability, prolonged stage one with premature placental separation, or prolonged stage two with uterine atony or
nitrate toxicity and accidents. As in many cases of PM, the cause is undetermined; it has been suggested that veterinary pathologists may need to use
the experience from the work-up of human stillbirths [47].

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Perinatal calf evaluation

All calves suer some degree of respiratory-metabolic acidosis at birth
[48], but the duration of calving and the duration and force of intervention
during calving aect fetal survival [37,48]. Passage through the birth canal
triggers fetal catecholamine release, which inhibits lung liquid secretion
and stimulates its absorption, promotes surfactant secretion, and increases
lung compliance and fetal oxygenation. However, calves born after prolonged calving have increased respiratory and metabolic acidosis [37,48].
Whether calves are assisted or not during calving and the degree of assistance also aects perinatal vigor. Thus, calves assisted compared with unassisted, or those pulled out by strong compared with mild traction, have
increased respiratory-metabolic acidosis and take longer to achieve sternal
recumbence [37,49]. The vigor of the calf can be assessed immediately after
calving by its reexes and by the time it takes to head-right, achieve sternal
recumbence, attempt to stand, and to stand (3, 5, 20, and 60 minutes, respectively) [37,48]. If the calf exhibits supercial abdominal breathing or has
poor reexes, or it takes more than 15 minutes to achieve sternal recumbence, the prognosis is poor [49].

Calf resuscitation
Most calves that require resuscitation are usually not attended by a veterinary practitioner because most dystocia and prolonged calvings are
attended by herd sta only or are unattended. Hence, the role of the veterinary practitioner in calf resuscitation is twofold: rst, to draw up a standard
operating procedure for at-risk calves for herd sta and second, to resuscitate
calves after veterinary-assisted calvings. The standard operating procedure
should document for herd sta a standard resuscitation equipment kit to
be located in the maternity pen area and details of rst-aid procedures to
be followed with at-risk calves (Fig. 1). At-risk calves are those which are
likely to need resuscitation because of their calving outcomes. These calves
can often be detected before birth (by the likelihood of dystocia [eg, in small
obese heifers]), during birth (large forelimbs, swollen tongue, cyanosed muzzle and gums, posteriorly presented, or delivered by Caesarean operation), or
after birth (apnea or dyspnea, lateral recumbence, accid musculature, or
poor pedal and suck reexes). A resuscitation kit for herd sta on large dairies should include a stethoscope, rectal thermometer, compressed air device
(eg, Ambu bag), needles, suction pump, and oxygen delivery equipment
[50]. For successful resuscitation of at-risk calves, herd sta need to practice
good calving supervision (ie, be present to assist the calf), prompt calf viability evaluation (during and immediately after birth), and early aggressive
intervention (ie, active management of calving and calf care).
The ABC of resuscitation (airway patency, breathing stimulation, circulation support) indicates the sequence of priorities for herd sta in dealing

NEWBORN DAIRY CALF MANAGEMENT

Be present at calving
|
Monitor calving progress and assist, as necessary
(see Mee, 2004 [2] for intervention decision tree)
|
Calf in birth canal, but thorax emerged
|
Establish patent airway
(aspirate pharyngeal and nasal fluid)
|
Stimulate breathing and circulation
(physical cardiopulmonary resuscitation, positive pressure ventilation, pharmacological
stimulants, oxygen therapy)
|
Calf is born
|
Assess vital signs immediately
(head-righting reflex, activity, breathing, heart rate, mucus membranes)
|
Establish patent airway
(suspend calf upside-down)
|
Stimulate breathing and circulation
(physical cardiopulmonary resuscitation, positive pressure ventilation, pharmacological
stimulants, oxygen therapy)
|
Place calf in sternal dog sitting posture
|
Monitor vital signs
(reflexes, activity, demeanour, breathing, heart rate, mucus membranes, rectal
temperature)
|
Correct mixed respiratory metabolic acidosis
(sodium bicarbonate therapy, as necessary)
|
Umbilical antisepsis
(chlorhexidine, repeated, as necessary)
|
Feed colostrum
|
Prevent hypothermia
(dry off and heat up)
Fig. 1. Standard operating procedure for intensive care of at-risk newborn calves.

with at-risk calves. Resuscitation can commence while the calf is still in the
birth canal and continues until the vital signs have normalized (eg, posture,
activity, respiratory function, rectal temperature) or until a heart beat is
undetectable with a stethoscope. Resuscitative rst-aid procedures can be
implemented by all herd sta using physical techniques requiring little
equipment. Once the calfs thorax has emerged from the cow, the calf can
breathe even if it remains in situ because of hip lock. Thus, resuscitation
can begin during a problem calving by stimulation of the calfs nasal

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receptors with straw or a nger (or an intranasal tube if oxygen therapy is

available). Immediately after birth, the calf should be briey suspended upside down. This procedure facilitates postural drainage of pulmonary uids
and has a positive impact on pulmonary gas exchange, correction of mixed
acidosis, and subsequent absorption of colostral immunoglobulins [51].
Clearance of the airways can begin with pharyngeal and nasal suctioning
using an aspirator pump [52]. Although only a small volume of uid
(!10 mL) is generally removed, the procedure signicantly benets pulmonary gas exchange and acid-base balance [53].
Hypothermal stimulation has become the most common technique used
to resuscitate calves; it is done by pouring cold water down the calfs ear
or over the head or whole body to induce a gasp reex. Recent research indicates that it has a benecial eect on pulmonary gas exchange and acidbase balance in calves [53]. Once a patent airway has been established and
breathing stimulation has commenced, the calf should be placed in sternal
recumbence in the dog sitting posture with lateral support. This posture
has a positive impact on physiologic adaptation mechanisms, prevents hypostatic congestion in the dependant lung of lateral recumbence, and facilitates attempts at positive pressure ventilation [51]. Acupuncture of the nasal
philtrum or pinching of the nasal septum is also recommended because it
stimulates a specic inspiratory initiating reex. Articial respiration by
expired air resuscitation techniques such as mouth-to-mouth or use of emergency articial respirators, or following intubation, has not been successful
in calves at this center [52]. Compressed air devices (eg, Ambu bag, H-K
Calf Resuscitator) on the other hand, when used correctly (usually necessitating two people to operate), are clinically eective in newborn calves, even
without intubation [52].
Although widely used in human perinatology and for valuable calves (eg,
clones), oxygen therapy for calf resuscitation is not widely used on commercial dairy farms primarily because of the inconvenience of the equipment
required. Studies in neonatal calves [54] indicate oxygen therapy can improve perinatal survival. For herd sta use, industrial oxygen can be administered with a face mask or intranasal tube, whereas experienced veterinary
practitioners can administer oxygen by way of a cued endotracheal tube
[55]. The latter route permits lower ow rates, is more eective in lung
expansion, and ensures a patent airway [50]. Oxygen can be used initially
in primary apnea where the calf has a heart beat but is not breathing immediately after birth. A high ow rate (25 L/min) is used along with sealing of
the mouth, nostrils, and esophagus to ensure immediate lung ination in
cases of partial atelectasis. In cases where the calf is breathing but dyspneic,
a lower ow rate (5 L/min) can be used for insuation until eupnea returns
[55]. The clinical benets of pharmacologic respiratory stimulants, such as
doxapram and etamiphylline, in newborn calves are inconclusive [52]; hence,
their use is often discouraged [50]. However, they are widely used and studies have shown positive eects on acid-base balance [56]; therefore, they

NEWBORN DAIRY CALF MANAGEMENT

11

should be considered for use in dyspneic neonatal calves. In cases of cardiac

asystole, external cardiac massage should be attempted, and epinephrine can
be administered intravenously. Cases of sinus bradycardia may respond well
to atropine [50].
Following successful perinatal resuscitation, many calves that experience
dystocia or prolonged calving will still have a mixed metabolic-respiratory
acidosis in the rst 6 hours of life. In addition, some calves develop secondary
acidosis within 24 hours of birth, with a poor suck reex, tachypnea, tachycardia, weakness, depression, and hypothermia. Such postnatal acidosis is
a signicant risk factor for PM. Correction of postnatal metabolic acidosis
can be eectively achieved with drip or bolus intravenous infusion of sodium
bicarbonate instituted after resuscitation and repeated as necessary [57].
Given our inability to measure blood acid-base status under eld conditions in veterinary practice and our reliance on secondary signs of acidosis,
all available combinations of resuscitation techniques should be attempted
unless they are harmful to the calf or the operator.
Umbilical care
After spontaneous rupture of the umbilical cord, the urachus and vessels
normally retract into the abdomen, thus protecting them from environmental contamination. At assisted calvings, there is a tendency to rupture the
cord immediately. Although research in calves is limited, one study found
a long-term decrease in the eciency of pulmonary gas exchange in calves
with assisted premature umbilical cord rupture compared with those with
spontaneous rupture [58]. Thus, leaving the cord to rupture spontaneously
may be advantageous.
Omphalitis, or navel ill, occurs in 5% to 15% of newborn calves [59,60].
Because it is generally untreated [59], it can lead to reduced growth, joint ill,
and other sequelae. Prevention of navel ill is based on maintaining maternity
pen hygiene, reducing the residency time of calves in unhygienic maternity
pens, ensuring adequate early intake of good quality colostrum, and navel
antisepsis. Despite widespread adoption and diverse, often conicting, recommendations, research data on umbilical care in calves are limited, with
no consensus of opinion; this area requires good applied research. The
benets attributed to navel antisepsis include reduced calf morbidity and
mortality [61], specically, prevention of mycoplasma arthritis [62] and reduction in respiratory disease [63]. However, published studies showing a signicant reduction in navel ill in calves were not found. Studies in babies
have shown antiseptic cord care reduces bacterial colonization, exudate formation, and foul odor, compared with dry cord care [64].
In contrast to these positive outcomes, reports are numerous of detrimental sequelae following navel antisepsis, including increased calf morbidity
and mortality [65,66], specically, prolonged cord drying time [67], increased
incidence of navel ill (Abelardo Martinez, Hoards Dairyman, personal

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communication, 2007) and treatment for pneumonia [68]. In other studies,

navel antisepsis failed to prevent omphalitis [60,69] or was no more ecacious than no treatment [70]. Studies in babies have linked topical iodine
cord antisepsis to iodine overload, thyroid blockade, and hypothyroidism
[71], whereas in vitro studies have shown povidone-iodine (10%) to be
markedly cytotoxic and to delay wound healing [72].
The choice of cord care procedure is also underresearched in calves. Topical antiseptics, particularly iodine and chlorhexidine (dip or spray), are
more widely used in calves than topical antibiotic spray, cord clamping, or
ligation. With babies, the cord is swabbed with triple dye, clamped, and
kept dry. Proposed state legislation to restrict the supply of tincture of iodine
may aect its future availability in the United States. Chlorhexidine has
a wide spectrum of antimicrobial activity and sustained residual activity
and is ecacious in the presence of organic matter such as blood. Few studies compare cord antiseptics in farm animals. In one epidemiologic study,
risk of calf mortality was signicantly lower following use of chlorhexidine,
compared with iodine or no cord care; iodine tended to increase mortality
risk [61]. A comparison of iodine (1%, 2%, and 7%) or chlorhexidine
(0.5%) dipping or dry cord care in foals concluded that chlorhexidine and
7% iodine are the most eective in reducing cord bacterial growth but 7%
iodine occasionally sloughed the adjacent skin [73] and may contribute to
aseptic omphalitis [74]. The incidence of joint ill did not dier signicantly
between lambs treated with an iodine dip or spray or clamp and lambs left
untreated [70]. The incidence of omphalitis did not dier among iodine dipping, cord clamping, and cord emasculation in piglets [75]. It appears that, in
herds without umbilical-associated problems, farmers should avoid possibly
harmful cord application procedures and concentrate on maternity hygiene
and calf immunity. In herds with serious navel ill problems, producers
should consider improving maternity pen hygiene, immediate and repeated
cord dipping with chlorhexidine (possibly in a paper cup to avoid container
contamination), calf snatching, hand feeding colostrum, and regular checking for omphalitis (swollen and painful navel, pyrexia), with metaphylactic
parenteral antimicrobial therapy as appropriate. The need for controlled
experiments on cord care in calves on commercial dairies is reiterated.

Calf movement after calving

In herds where Johnes disease may be present based on a risk assessment,
clinical history, or laboratory results, newborn heifer calves in particular
should not be allowed to suckle but should be fed hand-milked colostrum
from their dam and immediately removed (calf snatch) and placed in
a calf house or hutch. Where the risk of infectious disease is acceptable,
calves may benet from remaining with their dam to increase their opportunities to suckle naturally and to enhance the absorption of colostral

NEWBORN DAIRY CALF MANAGEMENT

13

immunoglobulin over colostrum fed in the absence of the dam. Because cows
tend to lick o antiseptics applied to the umbilicus, such antiseptics should be
reapplied on removing the calf from the maternity pen. Where maternity pen
hygiene is poor, calf residency time should be reduced to a minimum to prevent common calfhood infectious disorders such as omphalophlebitis, diarrhea, pneumonia, and septicemia. Moving the calf from the maternity pen
to the calf house presents an opportunity to conduct a quick check on the
calfs health status. Problems to look out for include persistent signs of acidosis, dyspnea, umbilical bleeding or organ eventration, and hypothermia.

Summary
Despite advances in dairy herd health and productivity, perinatal calf
mortality rates are still unacceptably high on many dairy farms. Although
some of this loss has a genetic origin and may be outside the producers control, management strategies at the herd level and management procedures at
the animal level (Table 1) can be implemented to improve perinatal welfare.
The key features of successful newborn dairy calf management are ensuring
heifers and cows are moved in time to calve in suitable maternity housing;
discreet calving supervision and appropriate timing of any necessary calving
assistance; immediate parturient evaluation of at-risk newborn calves followed by aggressive resuscitation; strategic navel antisepsis; early detection
(and treatment) of perinatal problems; and prompt movement of the newborn calf to hygienic calf housing. Veterinarian-led producer implementation of active management of calving and newborn calf care can improve
perinatal welfare and health.
Table 1
Dos and donts of newborn calf management
Period

Do

Dont

Precalving

Move cows to the maternity unit

before calving commences.
1. Provide deep straw bedding in
individual maternity pens.
2. Monitor cows every 3 to 6 hours
after the onset of stage one of
calving.
3. Intervene at least 2 hours after the
onset of stage two of calving.
1. Assess calf vital signs immediately
after calving.
2. Acquire resuscitation aids and train
sta in use of resuscitative
techniques.
3. Implement umbilical antisepsis.

Move cows during stage one of

calving.
1. Overcrowd group maternity pens.

Calving

Postcalving

2. Unnecessarily disturb cows during

stage one or two of calving.
3. Tether heifers at calving, unless for
assistance.
1. Cut the umbilical cord or rupture it
prematurely.
2. Assume a weak calf will eventually
suck adequately.
3. Leave the calf with the dam in herds
with paratuberculosis.

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MEE

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